A minor league system that was struggling offensively has suddenly found their bats. Kane County won two out of three thanks to the steady contributions of Carlos Penalver and Yasiel Balaguert. Daytona exploded for 18 runs on Tuesday behind the hot bats of Gioskar Amaya, Marco Hernandez, and Tim Saunders. John Andreoli has set the table for Tennessee, while Kris Bryant remains consistent. And Arismendy Alcantara went yard twice as Iowa now has a winning record. And for those who like pitching, … [Read more...]

Pitching was on center stage as Kane County’s Daury Torrez flirted with a perfect game while teammate Duane Underwood allowed only an unearned run in his second start. Daytona’s tough-lock pitcher Felix Pena finally got some run support, but Ivan Pineyro could not say the same for Tennessee. C.J. Edwards picked up his first Double-A win, and Tsuyoshi Wada continued to impress in Iowa.
All of this, and more in the Down on the Farm report. … [Read more...]

Week two saw some fancy pitching in Iowa as Kyle Hendricks and Tsuyoshi Wada helped the I-Cubs to a winning record. Tennessee even their record thanks to clutch hitting by Stephen Bruno and Wes Darvill. But times remain tough in Daytona as Saturday’s 7-1 romp was their only bright spot. Kane County took advantage of some sloppy play and the hot hitting of Carlos Penalver to move their record to 7-3.
Duane Underwood made his Kane County debut on Sunday while Kris Bryant and Albert Almora each … [Read more...]

Welcome everyone to a new minor league season. Jacob Hannemann, Pin-Chieh Chen and Gioskar Amaya have started the season hot at the plate, while Tyler Skulina, Daury Torrez and Tayler Scott have sparkled on the mound.
Albert Almora ended his 0-for start to the season in a big way on Saturday night. Almora went 5-for-6 with three RBI and two runs scored as part of Daytona’s 21-hit attack.
Javier Baez was ejected from Saturday night’s game and sat out the start of Sunday’s contest against … [Read more...]

Minor League Preview: Low-A Kane County and High-A Daytona
Top o’ the Morning to everyone at the CCO! Today is the second of a three part installment previewing the 2014 minor league season. Please note that the previews are based on current roster assignments and anticipated Spring Training success. All assignments, both as to position and level, are subject to change pending the completion of spring training. … [Read more...]

Pitching Analysis
The CCO’s off-season look at the Cubs’ minor league system continues today. After viewing the possible pitching staff for Triple-A Iowa and Double-A Tennessee, it is time to take a look at the pitching prospects for High-A Daytona. … [Read more...]

The Daytona Cubs are the FSL North Champions and are Florida State League Championship Series bound after Wednesday’s 4-0 victory over the Dunedin Blue Jays. The D-Cubs swept the best of three series behind excellent pitching. After Corey Black dominated in game one, C.J. Edwards struck out eight batters over five no-hit innings on Wednesday. Ryan Searle closed out the two-hit shutout with four scoreless frames. C.J. Edwards picked up his first win in the Cubs organization.
Kris Bryant … [Read more...]

Cubs Down on the Farm Report – 08/26/13
The intensity has ramped up as we move into the final week of the minor league regular season. Tennessee moved closer to clinching a playoff spot as Javier Baez continued to wreak havoc in the Southern League. Daytona looked like an unstoppable force once the weather let up and Kris Bryant was unleashed. Kevin Encarnacion and Justin Marra have helped move Boise into a first place tie, while Kane County and Iowa also experienced some successes.
For … [Read more...]

The minor league season is coming down to the wire as Tennessee had a winning streak snapped but reduced their magic number in the Southern League. Daytona continues to maintain a five game lead in the Florida State League with fourteen games left to play. Boise and the AZL Cubs are fighting for their playoff lives, as they are two and three games out of first place respectively. The DSL Cubs are clinging to a two game lead with four games on the schedule, while Iowa can only play out the … [Read more...]

The Cubs’ affiliates had a decent end of the week. Boise pulled to within a game of first place with help from Carlos Penalver. Kane County posted a couple of wins, while Iowa received an excellent spot start from Casey Coleman. Tennessee kept its grip on first place thanks to Javier Baez and two game winning home runs. Both Kris Bryant and Dan Vogelbach have settled in well and are contributing to Daytona’s playoff push.
To see how it all went down, check out today’s Down on the Farm Report. … [Read more...]